Citadel Advisers Ups Navistar Stake To 5.4 Percent

Citadel Advisers LLC have bought additional shares in Navistar International Corp (NYSE:NAV), bringing its stake to 5.4 percent, according to latest SEC Form 13D filing. Kenneth Griffin’s Citadel Advisers has put in a huge stake, in a company that, Activist Investor Carl Icahn, owns 15 percent of shares outstanding.

According to the filing, Griffin may be deemed to own 4,348,428 shares of common stock, or 5.4 percent of the Illinois-based special vehicles company. The ownership gives Griffin and one of his investment partner firms, Citadel Investment Group II, L.L.C, a shared voting and disposal power equivalent to the 5.4 percent, while Citadel Advisers and Citadel Holdings II LP share a voting and disposal power equivalent to 4,196,228 shares, or 5.2 percent of shares outstanding.

The Chicago Illinois-based Citadel is a global investment institution founded in 1990 by Kenneth Griffin and manages 27 accounts, totaling an estimated $115 Billion of assets under management. Its Asset management units has approximately $12.5 billion AUM.

Navistar International Corp (NYSE:NAV), through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells commercial and military trucks, buses, diesel engines, and recreational vehicles, as well as provides service parts for trucks and trailers worldwide. The company has 80.03 million shares of common stock outstanding, with 67.35 million floated.

Its market capitalization stands $1.81 billion, while the enterprise value is estimated at $5.02 billion, which is 2.77 times the market cap. The company’s total cash as reported from the most recent quarter stood at $1.50 billion, or $18.81 per share. Navistar is highly indebted with a $4.77 billion reported as debt from the most recent quarter, compared to a market cap of $1.81 billion.

The company faces competition from industry giants including the OTC Markets listed BAE Systems PLC (PINK:BAESY) (LON:BA), and PACCAR Inc (NASDAQ:PCAR), with market caps of $18.62 billion and $16.41 billion respectively. The two industry giants have a net income of $1.96 billion and $1.19 billion respectively, for the trailing 12-months period as compared to Navistar’s net loss of $3.01 billion. However, it is the privately held Daimler AG, which tramps the three companies, with its net income of $7.34 billion for the same period.

This could be a justification for Citadel’s purchase as it fits well with the low of bullish investment, where investors purchase the stock at its lowest point, with an anticipation of a rally. Or, following Carl Icahn’s huge investment, who besides his activist tag, is also known for targeting value stocks, is a sign that Navistar is set for a better future.

At the time of writing, Navistar International Corp (NYSE:NAV) stock was trading at $22.51 per share, up $0.55, or 2.48 percent increase from the previous close.